Rain [PG-13]

[Pan]

Eris hesitantly received the weapon, holding it awkwardly in her hands. Firearms were rarely used in her town, only for self-defense. That isn't to say she'd actually used one, though, but given the circumstances there was never a better time to learn.

As Hugh took off in the opposite direction, Eris realized that her chance had finally come.. or rather, another chance. Seeing as all the others were promptly murdered and gutted.

She also ran off, dashing out into the open space in front of her and trying to take cover behind large rocks and dying bushes. All that was left now was to survive until the situation had calmed, then she could track her way back to what was left of home.

[Twilight Kiwi]

It had seemed to take Nix forever to make his way through the scrub - apparently it was the thickest right before it tapered out into mud flats and rocky protrusions, for some reason - but his advance was inexorable, and he was a patient war machine. They couldn't outrun him as long as he had enough power to run at full speed.

As if to taunt him, a warning blip popped into his peripheral awareness: main power levels were down to 20%. Dammit, he'd told the mercs that they should've let him fully recharge before leaving base again. No more lasering if he didn't want to get left behind. Not that it'd be such a terrible thing, to have a bit of a break from them while he recharged, but it would be if his commanders finally decided he was more trouble than he was worth.

Thus distracted, it took a few seconds for Nix to realize he'd run right between the two remaining targets, letting them scatter. Scrambling to slow his charge and not lose his footing, his torso swiveled 180 degrees as he struggled to get one of them in his sights - a woman, armed but not dressed like a soldier. He cursed internally as bullets sprayed the ground beside her, splattering her with dirt and shattered stone but leaving her relatively unscathed - his right foot had slipped into a shallow mudhole, throwing off his normally near-faultless aim. Or maybe it had been the loss of the camera. In any case, if he had been capable of scowling in agitation at the wasted ammunition he would've been.

He hoped one or both of them would try to fight back, seeing his apparent vulnerability as he tried to yank his leg free of the muck. He was largely impervious to all but the most advanced small arms fire - and such armaments were scarce, their ammo or charges even rarer - and if they attacked, it would give him more time to recover and get a proper shot off. But more likely they would do the smart thing and keep running, in opposite directions; a strong survival instinct was pretty much a prerequisite for those left on Earth.

[Yiehtk]

For a moment, Hugh considered to keep on running. He knew it would have been wise to just keep at it, to just -go-, but even if he were able to escape, two hands were better than one. He could die, tomorrow, in fact. The mercs would still be out there, and he didn’t know the area.

And besides, his teammates were definitely all dead. He would have come across one of them by now. He’d mourn them later though. Well, he’d mourn some of them.

The machine had gone off to where he thought Eris had gone. She’d make pretty damn good bait but-

Hugh sighed, pointing his gone at the machine.

And pulled the trigger.

And -nothing- came out.

He was… out of ammo.

“Well, damn.”

[Pan]

Eris eyed her gun again. It was rusted, old, and she actually wasn't sure if the damn thing still worked. But part of the battle was fooling them into believing she was armed, right? Hiding seemed to help, though she doubted her rock would work for very much longer. These mercenaries were searching every nook and cranny of the wood, and sooner or later the boulders would be next.

She leaned off to the side to get a slower look, examining the backs of the mercenaries. Their war machine looked as if it could tumble over any minute.. regardless, it was almost amazing they managed to salvage a working vehicle. Excessive rains shut down most of the power-generating machines around the world.

"Hey, I found one-"

A voice rang behind her, startling her. Spinning around, she blinding fired her weapon, grazing him across the shoulder.

[Twilight Kiwi]

Nyx immediately reasserted his footing in satisfaction as the man turned and tried, with comical failure, to return fire. His main gun oriented on the target inexorably, and -

A shout and gunfire briefly distracted him. Normally he wouldn't have been fazed by the sound of other battles around him, but his first instinct had been that the other straggler - the girl - was shooting at him now. He sighed internally as he spotted another of his "companions" getting gunned down. She's all yours, boys.

From her clothing and the way she held her weapon, she didn't seem much like a typical bandit to Nyx, but he supposed anyone could end up as one these days. It only took a desperate enough person to go from ordinary, law-abiding citizen to ruthless brigand.

Not that Nyx blamed them. The only real difference between gangs and mercenary outfits like his own were size, organization, and firepower. Their methods and motivations were much the same. There were few other options for survival now...

Dammit, I was drifting off again. Unprofessional! He'd lost track of the man. Sweeping the area with his various sensors, he set himself on an intercept course with the girl for the moment, bearing down on her position to keep her from escaping.